


What Are Friends For?

by kickassfu



Category: The Magicians (TV)
Genre: Angst, Depression, Friendship, Funny, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Queliot, M/M, Marqueliot friendship, Quentin is depressed and they try to help, idk where this is in the timeline, maybe future fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-06
Updated: 2019-04-06
Packaged: 2020-01-05 11:31:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18365129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kickassfu/pseuds/kickassfu
Summary: “Yeah, we love how much of a freaking nerd you are.”“Margo!”“What? It’s true, we love him because of who he is, not in spite of it. I wouldn’t be here, if he wasn’t the big nerd he is.”“That’s the kind of thing his boyfriend should get to say, not you.”“I guess now he’s my boyfriend, tough luck, El.”





	What Are Friends For?

**Author's Note:**

> I got this prompt and tried my best: Q has a bad day with depression so Margo and El do cirque du soleil to cheer him up, going back to when he was doing it for Alice. Margo was adamant that she would NEVER do it, but then Q wouldn't even smile at her Fillory puns so her and El decide desperate times call for circus impressions…
> 
> I failed on the puns, 'cause I forgot about them lol
> 
> And I'm just tired...writing depressed Quentin...hurts...

You know those days when you can’t even bring yourself to get up, but somehow you force yourself to, because you have to - you have to, or else. So you do, you get up, put on the first clothes that come to hand, and you think that you have to wash your teeth, wash your face. But you don’t, you put your hair up in a shitty bun, pop some gum and leave the room before your legs refuse to move another step.

 

It was one of those days, for Quentin Coldwater. Where his body weighed a ton, and he felt particularly empty and lifeless, and useless. Like nothing mattered at all, least of all him. And he wanted to cry it all out, to feel something, but he couldn’t - as if he was all dried up, just an absolute void. Maybe his classes would help, I mean magic was magic, right?

 

_ Wrong. _

 

It didn’t help and he just wanted to fall into bed and stay there for a few years maybe, at least a month. He was just so tired, so so so damn tired. 

 

Soon enough it rolled into lunch time, and he considered making the effort: get up, get food, eat, but even that was too much, so he kept sitting on the couch in the Physical Kids Cottage. Time passed, until it became far too late to go to his other classes, and still he didn’t move. 

 

_ Move. _

 

Move, move, move, move.

 

Please just fucking move.

 

Quentin felt someone sit beside him, two someone’s in fact, one on each side. Not opening his eyes, he just hoped no one talked to him. Again, why hope?

 

“Q, are you ok?”

 

It was Margo, oh, and she sounded worried; so that meant that comforting smell and warmth was Eliot. Better people you love, than random stranger, but he just wanted to be left alone to wallow in his shitty depression by himself. 

 

When his body leaned into Eliot’s, his brain screamed liar, liar, liar. Honestly fuck his brain, it wasn’t being particularly helpful today anyway. A hand started combing his hair softly, and for the first time that day, he felt something; Quentin just wanted to curl next to Eliot forever, but then a smaller hand touched his thigh, and yeah, maybe he should answer. What was the question again?

 

“Quentin, are you ok?” Eliot asked.

 

Right, that.

 

“ _ Yes. _ ”

 

Except he wasn’t, and it seemed like he could hear the looks they exchanged between each other, because they didn’t believe him either.

 

_ They hate you.  _

 

_ They’re just faking it.  _

 

_ They don’t actually care about you. _

 

_ Why would anyone ever like  _ you _? _

 

_ You’re a mess, and you just fuck up everything around you. _

 

Logically Quentin knew that those were lies his broken brain used against him, when he was weakest, but it worked. It always worked, unless he actively fought those thoughts. Without meaning to, without noticing it, he actually spoke out loud, “They love me.”

 

_ They love me, they love me, they love me, they care.  _

 

“Open your eyes, please.” she didn’t say it, but Quentin heard the threat in her voice,  _ before I open them for you _ . She wouldn’t, all of them knew it, but there was that edge to her voice, the High King voice. So he complied.

 

There was nothing but love and understanding in her eyes, and  _ that _ was too much, so he looked away, but then there was Eliot. And  _ his _ eyes, well, Quentin could lose himself in them, however his brain was still yelling at him and he couldn’t handle it, not right then.

 

“Of course we love you, Q.” Eliot said, cupping Quentin’s face, and kissed his forehead.

 

“Yeah, we love how much of a freaking nerd you are.”

 

“Margo!”

 

“ _ What? _ It’s true, we love him because of who he is, not in spite of it. I wouldn’t be here, if he wasn’t the big nerd he is.”

 

“That’s the kind of thing his boyfriend should get to say, not you.”

 

“I guess now he’s  _ my _ boyfriend, tough luck, El.”

 

Their conversation was silly, but it made him focus on something other than his thoughts; it was a sweet reprieve. They looked at him expectantly, probably hoping he was smiling by then, but no - he couldn’t. 

 

“Bambi, I think we have to do something drastic.” Eliot said, getting up, and stretching his arm to help Margo up.

 

“No, I’m not drunk enough for that.”

 

Eliot just stared at her, very intensely, and she glared back so hard she could kill any lesser man, it was kind of funny, if Quentin didn’t feel like a pot of boiled noodles.

 

“ _ Fine _ .”

 

Apparently, whatever it was, Eliot won, and Margo took his hand, and got pulled up in one fell swoop.

 

“But just for the record, I hate you.”

 

“Yes, yes, I also hate myself for this, but it’s  _ Quentin _ .”

 

“If this doesn’t show you, how much we love you, nothing ever will.”

 

Taking a deep breath, and with a disgusted look on her face, Margo started twirling around; she slapped Eliot’s arm so he started moving as well, and- was that?

 

“Are you-” he started saying while they jumped around with stretched limbs, “are you doing cirque du soleil?”

 

“ _ Yes. _ ” she said, her voice pained.

 

“Very badly, but-”

 

“Speak for yourself, I’m as graceful as a fucking swan.”

 

At that, Quentin was no longer processing anything but the two people in front of him, making fools of themselves, for him. Margo Hanson and Eliot Waugh, were jumping around like idiots, for Quentin Coldwater. And that was his breaking point, he just started laughing, with his whole body.

 

Seeing their little stunt worked, Margo stopped, “Oh thank fuck.”

 

“I thought you were as graceful as a swan?”

 

She didn’t even have to say anything, her eyes were even deadlier than earlier.

 

Quentin’s laughter faded, “I’m just so tired.”

 

“I know baby, let’s get you into bed.”

 

They both went up with him, helped him wash his teeth and change into something more comfortable. And even though they could have left, they didn’t. Putting him to bed, they got in with him, and the comfort of their bodies almost made him cry.

 

Quentin wasn’t sure what he’d do without them, couldn’t even imagine a world where they weren’t there. 

 

He loved them, and they loved him.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm also kickassfu on tumblr~~


End file.
